Favorite Dessert Spots?

[johnjohn]

i'm not the cupcake queen but i had the 5 course dessert tasting at wd-50 the other night and it was fun.

i had the pleasure of visiting while simultaneously hungover and drunk, so my recollections may not be as descriptive as some may hope.

here's what i had, i think in this order...

1) tomato sorbet with olive oil powder, croutons and micro basil.  a play on caprese.  i could not, for the life of me, figure out how the powder was done.  it was warm in its powdered state and dissolved on the tongue, yet didnt seem to dissolve against the sorbet.  the tomato sorbet has an awesome flavor- really fresh and bright.

2) roasted corn ice cream on coffee soil, corn oil.  a variation on the earlier butternut squash sorbet dish on the website.  again, the corn flavor was right fucking on.  intense and well matched for the coffee.

3) celery sorbet with crunchy peanut butter and raisins.  liked the celery (very refreshing) in particular.  i also liked that the raisins were spiced subtly enough to get a depth of flavor at the end.

4) lemon curd with basil meringue, lemon chip and blackberry puree.  i'm an anglophile who likes proper, eggy lemon curd spread on toast, but this was nice.  it had that good, puckery tartness that lemon-lovers look for in desserts.  it was opaque in color... was it set with agar?

5) roasted peach with white beer foam/meringue and a streak of.... some clear sauce.  i just remember it being too bitter for my palate.  but the peach flesh melted in your mouth.  it also came with an oat streusel which was clever, paired with the beer element.

then they brought out a sixth course.  (very kind, thank you.)  it was the chocolate hazelnut parfait .  not big on chocolate but i loved this one.  it was perfectly sized, perfectly creamy and perfectly contrasted, set on a crunchy base.  what was it, anyway?  feuilletine?  a single orange segment perfected the whole dish- it was just enough to balance the richness.

the meal ended with a bowl of the curried chocolate covered almonds.  curry just isn't for me but as soon as the flavor bursts in your mouth, the chocolate mellows it out. 

to reiterate what's been said elsewhere on the board, it was nicely executed, creative food.  people like to critique the flavor combinations as being too out-there just for the sake of being so, but anyone who tries SM's stuff knows that there's obviously a strong foundation in technique.

i'll be back on a sober night to try the food with my bf, who's piiiiiiiissed i didn't take him this time.

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If you don't mind me asking - how much did this cost?

[mdhl]

nope i don't mind, and it was thirty five dollars.

[cupcakequeen]

almost a month later, i haven't had a chance to put any thoughts on paper since my trip, but i am so glad i visited the restaurants i went to.

it was an inspiring trip to say the least....i was absolutely blown away by johnny iuzzuni's work at jean-georges. i don't know what i expected but i was absolutely amazed. the mint and white peach vacherin was fantastic. he also did a flawless almond blanc-manger. both very traditional desserts, but with more savory/contemporary flavors and accompaniments. the almond had a basil seed jus that was nice.

sam's desserts at wd-50 were unimaginably fantastic. as beautiful on the plate as they were in the mouth. the banana flan/chocolate ice cream/banana paper was great. the eggless lemon curd with basil foam was my favorite...very clean flavors.

i had a great lavender parfait & provence cake at aix. brasserie 8 1/2 was a total disappointment.

aquavit was really good. all cold desserts...but i guess most people don't have 5 plates on their table, like i did on mine. the apple-fennel cream and apple sorbet dessert was my favorite. also had the goat cheese parfait (very good) and a basil-chocolate frozen meringue.

i also got truffles from vosges...i love their stuff. especially the "rooster"- a taleggio and nut chocolate.

and black sesame ice cream and lychee sorbet from chinatown ice cream factory. delicious.

i'm ready for another visit to try all the places i had to pass up.

Edited October 15, 2005 by cupcakequeen (log)

[Pan]

I'm so glad you got back to us with your reactions. Would you be able to pick a single favorite out of all the places you went to, or better yet, a single favorite dessert from the trip, or were there just too many delicious things to choose from?

[cupcakequeen]

jean-georges. hands down. amazing service, beautiful atmosphere, phenomenal food. and, to pick one dessert: the mint-white peach vacherin. it was a perfect on a sweltering summer day in new york after a 6 course meal, cool and clean, and not too sweet.

for those unfamiliar with his menu, Iuzzuni does dessert "stories", with 4 elements to each dessert. the vacherin was just one element with a crisp, a fruit soup, etc.